Cedar Park Youth Tapped As Scholastic News Kids Press Corps Correspondent

CEDAR PARK, TX — Judging from the journalistic work of Truman J. Hamade so far, the future of print journalism appears to be in good hands.

A 5th grader from Cedar Park, Hamade, 10, was one just 20 new Kid Reporters — the only one from Texas — recently selected to write as part of the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps, along with 24 returning correspondents. He was selected for 2017-18 from a pool of more than 400 applicants worldwide, and has started providing coverage to the news service aimed at a young audience.

The young reporter already has shown a willingness to tackle hard news, having covered Hurricane Harvey relief efforts in Austin. His Sept. 18 piece showcases a precocious talent at painting word pictures, ably setting the scene in the mind of the reader.

"On a recent cloudless afternoon in central Texas, a twin-engine jet circled above the Georgetown Municipal Airport," his story begins. "Pilot David Robertson was preparing to land after traveling about 400 miles—to Houston and back. He had delivered supplies to Houston for people affected by Hurricane Harvey."

He then delves into the details of rescue efforts along the Texas Gulf Coast, describing his trip to the Georgetown airport where he witnessed volunteers filling boxes and bins filled with donated food, water and other supplies to the hurricane's displaced victims. While covering the efforts, the young scribe managed to land interviews with volunteers in providing readers with further insight.

"The community came together to provide help for the victims," Derick Zwerneman, a volunteer for the Austin Disaster Relief Network told him. The volunteer told Truman of the logistical challenges inherent to rescue efforts given the devastation on the ground.

That's when the enterprising reporter found a new angle for his dispatch in the form of René Banglesdorf, chief executive officer of Charlie Bravo Aviation in Georgetown, who organized a group of volunteer pilots to access the sites of devastation. He landed an interview with her as well.

“We’re able to fly in and deliver water and other supplies even when the roads are closed,” Banglesdorf told Truman, as described in his story. “We’re sending about 150 private planes each day loaded with things that people need.”

To read his full report on Hurricane Harvey, click here.

Patch spoke to Truman on the telephone to learn more about his journalistic work, following up with him via email. While chatting on the phone, he described a previous story he's written about bats—a narrative enhanced by previous visits he's taken where people line up to watch swarms of bats emerge from the underbelly of a bridge as they embark on their nocturnal hunt for bugs to eat.

"I have always liked seeing the bats at the bridge in Round Rock and flying around my house in the evenings and I know they help to control the insects," he said. "I wanted to write my article about the bats because I thought it would be a good way to tell people how important they are and that kids can do something to help protect them."

For that story, he interviewed an official with the Bat Conservation International and a Texas resident who owns a bat house. He submitted the bat story in his application to the Scholastic News Kid Reporter in May, learning he'd been tapped as a correspondent for the news service just a few weeks ago.

Asked if he's always had an interest in writing, Truman revealed an inquisitive nature as it relates to the world around him. This intellectual curiosity has led him to writing.

"I have always enjoyed making up and telling stories," he told Patch. "I also like learning about things happening around the world. As a kid reporter for Scholastic News, I get to write about current events and news that is important to kids like me."

A big value of his work is its potential to resonate with other young people, and possibly prompting them to engage in current events themselves, he suggested: "I think other kids will be more interested in politics or news events when the articles are written by someone like them. Also I think I understand more when I can research a story and interview the people that are making the news."

That hoped-for outreach is possible in his new role, with the work of Scholastic News Kid Reporters appearing on both the Scholastic News Kids Press Corps website and in issues of Scholastic Classroom Magazines, which reach more than 25 million students in classrooms nationwide.

Although he was just named a Scholatic News correspondent, Truman is no novice to writing. The Redeemer Lutheran School in Austin he attends participates in the Private School Interscholastic Association (PSIA), a program offering students opportunities to compete with their peers with categories in math, spelling, storytelling and writing.

"I have entered the storytelling competition in the past and I plan to try poetry and writing this year," he told Patch. "I hope it will help me improve my writing skills and public speaking. I think being a kid reporter will also help me to learn about the right details to include in a story to make it informative and fun for the reader."

Other Kid Reporters selected have interviewed authors, entertainers and public figures, including Librarian of Congress Carla D. Hayden; author and actor Chris Colfer; conservationist Jane Goodall; and author and illustrator Dav Pilkey. Truman said he's set his sights on landing an interview with Hillary Clinton when she drops into town in November for a book signing, hoping to gain more insights into why she lost the presidential election.

So far, Truman said he's learning a lot about the writing process after his initial assignment on Hurricane Harvey. As with any reporter starting in the craft, he described the editing process, noting how he would write initial drafts of this story and then wait for his editor to come back with suggestions and edits.

"It was my first report for Scholastic so I also learned that I have to write my story then my editor will read it and make suggestions to improve it," he said. "I hope I can become a better writer so I don't have to send a lot of drafts back."

As he continues to master his craft, Truman said he's got more stories to tackle in the coming weeks, including a feature on boys taking ballet and one on the upcoming Texas Book Festival where he hopes to land an impromptu interview with Dan Rather.

"He is also a journalist who has interviewed every president in the last 60 years," Truman explained. "He just wrote a new book. I think kids could probably learn a lot from a man like him and I would like to ask him if he has advice for a reporter like me who is just starting. "

His writing chops already revealed, it's that's type of tenacity that's also required of a good journalist. In his fledgling journalism career, it's clear Truman's off to a really good start.

>>> Photos of Truman J. Hamade courtesy of Scholastic News Kids Press Corps